We All Die A Little Bit
by thedarkhasfallen
Summary: Rated for mild language. Just a random spark. Maybe Sonic meant more to Shadow than just a hedgie that happened to look like him. Perhaps they actually were friends. Too bad Shadow always realizes this too late. Metal'll be glad to destroy it all.


"We All Die A Little Bit."

Why didn't he just finish him off? I mean, based on the injuries he'd sustained, that'd be the best thing for him, right? Jesus, just look at him… He's smashed his ribcage in; his right thigh has this huge piece of shrapnel stuck in it; he's probably punctured a lung based on the way he's breathing; his left shoulder has a lump sticking out of it that _should not_ be there; he's got one of his legs twisted in a way that _can't_ be natural. So, why is he just staring at him with a stunned expression on his face?

_For once in his life, Shadow was actually working with Sonic by his own choice. No one forced him to, no unseen-to-all-but-him supernatural being compelled him to, it just seemed right. And Eggman just happened to be the one they were squaring off against in the middle of Station Square._

_"Die." Shadow ordered simply with a wave of his hand, causing hundreds of Eggman robots to just drop dead._

_"Jeez Shadow, do ya have to be so unemotional about it?" Sonic panted and grinned at Shadow. The cobalt hedgehog seemed to have to put more effort into attacking than the ebony-streaked-with-crimson hedgehog did, but he seemed to like the effort, almost as if he didn't put in an effort then it wouldn't be fun anymore. Shadow turned around to face Sonic, face glazed over with a 'you've-got-to-be-kidding-me' expression._

_"Very well, if that's what you want." Shadow growled and kicked his Jet Shoes into 'hover mode'. He floated slowly up off the ground until he was around ten feet above Sonic's head. He took a deep breath and quickly surveyed the surrounding Eggman Army. Then, he held his hands out wide, as if expecting an embrace._

_'An embrace from Hell.' Sonic thought quickly as he took several steps back to give Shadow room._

_"Chaos… BLAST!" Shadow's cry rang out loud and proud as red Chaos energy radiated from his body in a sphere. Sonic shivered ever so slightly as the energy passed over him without causing harm, but slammed into the robots with such force that they were blown apart within the first millisecond they were touched by it. As Shadow floated back down wearing a smug look on his face, Sonic's grin returned. "Enough emotion for you?" Shadow mumbled with a psuedo-angry look plastered on to spite Sonic._

_"Yeah, I suppose." Sonic laughed, slightly startling the other hedgehog._

_'What reason does he have to laugh anyway? We're in the middle of a damn battle, but he won't realize the gravity of the situation until we're neck-deep in trouble…' Shadow huffed in his mind. '…As usual.' He added after a moment of thought._

_Just as Shadow was about to cut the hover ability, a shrill whistle pierced the sky and the conversation. Both hedgehogs froze as their ears pricked up, attempting to locate the source and discover what it was. About a second later, Shadow's ears laid back flat against his head as he realized the danger they were in._

_"Get the hell down!" Shadow screamed over the wail of the ever-approaching whistle and threw himself at Sonic._

_"Huh?" Sonic looked up for a split-second before Shadow forced him roughly to the ground, but it was enough to alert him to what was coming their way. His first instinct was to run, obviously. However, Shadow knew there was no way even Sonic could run fast enough to avoid a missile that was a mere football field from them, so he kept a hard grip on Sonic's shoulders to prevent him from trying anything stupid. The robots took advantage of the pause in attacks from the duo and started to close in. Shadow had only a second to conjure up a shield from the Chaos that remained from the previous Chaos Blast._

Why can't he just stop his double's suffering? He never wanted the other to suffer in the end… well; at one point he did, but not today. What did he do to deserve an ending filled with agony and pain? _Nothing._

_The world ignited in flame and everything went white when the missile hit. Shadow was thrown at least 20 feet, making him unable to locate Sonic. Sonic literally flew into the front lines of the Eggman Army, disabling one or two just by ramming them with his dead weight, unconscious of course. Shadow, though blinded by the explosion, crawled in the general direction of the spot where he had dragged Sonic down. A few moments later, his vision returned and he was able to limp towards the swarm of robots around Sonic. With a quick Chaos Blast, Shadow cleared Sonic of the enemies. By then, it was too late._

He placed one hand on his double's limp body, the shoulder that wasn't injured. As the other shuddered at the touch, a rage deep within his soul rose up into his heart. Now, he was _pissed_. Not _mad_, not _angry_, but _pissed_. And someone was going to pay for his idiotic mistakes.

Shadow the hedgehog rose to his feet, crimson irises ablaze with fury. Just as he took a step forward, a metallic likeness to his cobalt counterpart soared just over his head. Slightly disoriented by the echoing sonic boom that followed, Shadow reeled somewhat and turned to observe the new doppelganger that had appeared.

"Metal?" He inquired, knowing full well who it was, but trying to stall for time to recover. The other didn't respond, save for a swift kick to Shadow's face. Shadow leapt at the metal version of his counterpart while it's foot was still spinning around to come back to a neutral position. With a flick of his wrist, Shadow unleashed a flurry of Chaos Spears into Metal Sonic, all but one imbedding in his metal body. Metal ripped one from his body and curiously held it up in front of his eyes with little to no emotion.

_That's impossible!_ Shadow's mind shrieked, but he ignored it.

As Shadow mentally prepared himself for his next attack, Metal's red eyes flickered, as if he had the ability to blink. Shadow loosed a solid wall of Chaos at Metal; pushing him back several hundred yards while Shadow stumbled to a nearby trashcan, leaning on it in preparation for whatever Metal decided to do. Bullets rained down on Shadow, who ducked behind the can and panted as he waited for a ceasefire. Abruptly, a crumbled piece of paper floated through the air over Shadow. He snatched from the wind and unfolded it, smoothing it against his leg. It read: "We all die a little bit…" The rest was covered in a scarlet smudge. As he tried to remove the stain, a bullet managed to plunge into Shadow's arm. He gasped a bit, mostly out of shock than anything else, staring in dismay as the blood from his left arm further distorted the writing.

"Damn." He looked over his shoulder at Metal Sonic, and then tossed the paper straight up. Just as expected, Metal's sensors locked onto the paper and moved too slowly to catch Shadow's sprint. Shadow charged directly at Metal, an orb of Chaos in his palm, and drove his hand into Metal's titanium chest, damaging several circuits. He then grabbed Metal's legs and flipped onto his back. "This looks important!" Shadow grinned and tore at some exposed wires before being launched off. He landed gracefully on one hand and both feet, and then fired a beam of Chaos at Metal, who flew back low, grabbing something on the way. As Metal rose back up triumphantly, Shadow realized much to his horror that Metal now had Sonic captive. With a pained growl, Shadow flipped into a spin dash and careened at Metal, who only dodged by releasing Sonic. Everything slowed down suddenly and Shadow came to an epiphany as he watched Sonic fall. The reason behind him not finishing Sonic off was…

Sonic was his friend.

He knew what his friend wanted.

Sonic wanted a chance to fight back.

Shadow caught Sonic just before he hit the ground, then gently placed him on the asphalt. Sonic's green eyes flickered open for a brief instant, flashing in recognition, and then slammed shut.

_"Tell me what you've gone and done now."_

That was a long time ago. Sonic knew that time better than he did. Shadow refused to lose that part of his past. However, it sat awaiting slaughter at his feet. Shadow stood up and stepped over Sonic, charging another ball of Chaos in his right hand.

_"...Watching all you got slowly circling the drain. Throw it all away."_

And Shadow died a little bit as Metal fired again.

**A/N: Just a little friendly piece I started a while ago and decided to end. It was originally untitled until I read _MilkMamaReturn_'s "Between Sleep and Awake" and was inspired by a quote from the ninth chapter. So that's how the title came about. NO THIS IS NOT A SONADOW!!!! IT IS A FRIENDSHIP FIC!!!! Now that said issue is out of the way...  
The italics on the second and fourth line from the bottom are from Nickelback's "Just To Get High" from their new album Dark Horse. Sorry for my spewing of randomness, just had to get it out there.**

**Please drop me a review! I'd really appreciate it.**

**-When darkness falls, heroes will rise-  
-Swift-**


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